bdk Loc: Sanibel Fl.

if I post a photo on line , its with the understanding that others are going to use it for what ever reason.
very few will ask if they can use it., On facebook i can see the number of shares.
On Uhh I dont believe you can see whos using it.
to answer your question I never use a photo from here. If I need a pic and I can't take that pic,then I have gone to the free sites and downloaded needed pix. If they dont have what I need i'll go to a stock site and pay the fee to get a photo I need.

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

I am not a doctor, I am a photograher so if I don't feel well, I see a PHYSICIAN! I am not a lawyer, so I consult a LAWYER when I have an important legal issue or question, I don't count on "Dr. Google or Google, and Partnersl Attornies at Law" kinda thing. I mean a real LAWYER!

As a commercial photographer, I am somewhat familiar with copyright law because I have to deal with related issues in various contractual agreements with clients as to usage, licensing, ownership of images, etc. At one point in time, I had just about memorized Section 55 of the International Copyright Act and included references to it in my contracts. Over the years, however, times have changed and things have become more complex. Digital, imaging, social media, and the Internet in general, all have added to the complexities. Besides there are differet laws in various jurisdictions.

Dispite my experience, I would never assume to advise any photograher on these legalities, and the last person I would ask is another photographer. I am sure some photographers are significantly well-versed in copyright issues and more so than I am I also know that there are many who BELEIVE they know it all and operate on a lot of mythology, and old wives' tales and feel they have rights and privileges that they do not. They espouse false or erroneous information, not only about copyright and intellectual property issues, but privacy matters, shooting on private property concerns, and lots more. The star out sayig..we have the right to... and end up on the receiving end of a lawsuit or worse.

As for this forum, social media, etc. whatever you post there is at risk of unauthorized usage. Even if you have iron-clad legal protection, how are you gonna monitor the WORD-WIDE WEBB and enforc your rights? Do you have a law firm on retainer? The only advice I can offer in good faith is not to post anything that you fear will be copied, alterd, messed with, stolen, or in any way used against your will or better judgment. If you regularly sell your work commercially, as art, as a contractor, whatever, it is wise to consult will a LAWYER or law firm that is familiar with copyright, intellectual property, patent and trademark, and contra law.

You do not need to go to a lawyer for every contract or transaction. If your lawyer can familiarize you and set you up with some standardized contract forms, licensing agreements, etc. that is a good start.

Original question. I would NEVER download, display, or do anything with anyone else's work without permission- not only for LEGAL implications but for a moral reason and common courticy. If I leave an image enough to want to use it as a screen-saver, hang it in my office, use it for teaching or training, or whatever, I owe it to the maker to buy it or at the very least get their blessing. I will NEVER represent it as my own work and make certain the maker gets credit!

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

Bill_de Loc: US

Wrong!

Is everything on the Internet in the public domain? No. Content on the Internet is not "copyright-free" or "in the public domain." You will have to investigate the copyright status of each work, often by reading the terms and conditions, or 'About' pages of the website.Oct 19, 2023

https://www.lib.sfu.ca/help/academic-integrity/copyright/internet-public-domain

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Erroneously....

NOT automatically public domain!
But that's what so many people want it to be......

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

dustie Loc: Nose to the grindstone

👍. Enjoyed your reporting the free tale of Ol' Snuf' sneakin' out of his stompin' grounds in Hootin' Holler, to go up into Li'l Abner's turf of Dog Patch to do his hen snatchin'.

Prob'ly thought he'd sneak in and slip away from there easier than doin' the pilferin' too close to home.

OldCADuser Loc: Irvine, CA

If this were not true, then stock photo houses, like the one I sell images through, would have been out of business years ago. For example, I recently sold an image of an advent candle arrangement taken at our church. Now I don't get a detailed report of who bought it or where the image will be used, but if the buyer had wanted a photo of advent candles and he was free to 'steal' from the internet, then there would have been no need to go to a stock photo house and pay for the right to use one of my images.

goofybruce

Well, he was 'just vis-tin', and he liked the chick he saw so, why not! Nobody's going to be the wiser. 'Course, he had to brag about it and.....

dustie Loc: Nose to the grindstone

With that characteristic, amplified braggadocio, he got the better of himself, and cut himself off high above the knees if it comes to trying to claim to the masses it was jes' a misun'erstandin', jes' excusable ig'nernce.

Reject fortune cookie one liners off the henhouse floor won't be much he'p when th' fox runs smack dab face to face with the bid'net end of a chicken farmer's shotgun.

DebAnn Loc: Toronto

I really don't think that's true. Even if you post someone's photo somewhere for info purposes, you still should say who shot it.

hempimagery Loc: he Buckeye State

"When it's created, it's copyrighted"?

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

What's "it"?
The internet or the photo.......

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

"Understood" by people who want it to be that way.....

"I'm from Missouri...", show me where that is stated in print, by an authoritative entity.

"There is nothing about posting photos online that inherently places them in the public domain. You own the copyright to photos you take from the moment you take them. When you post them online through a third party website or social media platform, you agree to the terms of service of that website."
- from: https://photocopyrightlaw.com/are-photos-posted-online-in-the-public-domain/